After trailing 24-6 to Northwestern at halftime, Southwestern went on a 34-0 run in the second half to snag a 40-24 come-from-behind win. It was Southwestern’s first victory of the season while Northwestern fell to 0-4.

“In the first half, our guys came out and played real flat,” said Southwestern coach Chane Clingman. “Anything bad that could’ve happened in the first quarter seemed like it did happen, with turnovers, miscues and some penalties so we just told our guys to hang in there.

“We settled down and things started to happen well in the second half.”

Clingman called the win a “boost” for the program and hopes the momentum can carry over into this week’s conference matchup against Flint Powers on the road this Friday, Sept. 27. Knights players have to be passionate to win against the Chargers, but it doesn’t hold the same sentimental value as playing against Northwestern so players should be more at ease this week.

“We know that our schedule doesn’t get any easier, it gets tougher starting with this week,” Clingman said. “I think the last game was filled with emotions from the beginning and that was part of the problem. Our guys were so amped up that they were making mistakes that we normally wouldn’t make but once they settled down we understood that it was just another football game. Then, we started to execute and our guys did well.”

Southwestern running back JohnAnthony Fulgram rushed for a game-high 138 yards off 12 carries and a touchdown but is encouraging his team to keep its composure at all times. After falling behind big to Northwestern in the first half, he likes how his team responded when it mattered most but would like to see that at all times from his teammates.

“We just talked about sticking together and working as a team,” said Fulgram. “We just decided to stay disciplined and not make bad decisions and that’s what we did and everything came together.”

Swartz Creek matures

The maturation of the Swartz Creek program continued Friday as the Dragons scored 24 second-half points to post a 24-21 Metro League victory at previously unbeaten Lapeer West.

“We showed we had discipline,” Swartz Creek offensive/defensive tackle Kevin Weiler said “Any Swartz Creek team in the past would have thrown in the white flag. We knew we could beat this team and we got the job done.”

With the score tied 21-21, the Dragons won the game when senior kicker Jackson Maxwell booted a 32-yard field goal as time expired. Maxwell also had four touchbacks – all in the second half – three of which went out of the end zone. Both teams are now 3-1 overall and 2-1 in the Metro.

Fenton stays unbeaten

Fenton improved to 4-0 after scrambling to beat a tough Ortonville-Brandon 28-14 on Friday. The Tigers took advantage of three fumbles and three interceptions to score 28 straight second half points after trailing 14-0 at halftime.

"Our kids didn't panic. We were just ready to play the second half," Fenton coach Jeff Setzke said. "We made our corrections."

Fenton quarterback James Claborn completed 25 of 42 passes for 235 yards and two touchdowns to Ethan Quesnelle and Alec Thomas. While Quesnelle and Thomas accounted for two scores, Scott Lukas and Zach Kostka combined to catch nine passes for 128 yards. Dominic Weiss led the Fenton rushers with 12 carries for 145 yards and two touchdowns.